Devices for measuring and recording the data for injury analysis are generally known in the art, and have been used in various defense, emergency personnel, and violent sporting applications. Typical prior art devices are designed to identify specific impacts that may result in possible injury, such as brain injury, to a wearer without the wearer being immediately aware of the injury. For example, sensors for identifying whether an event that is likely to have caused a concussion are known in the art. Furthermore, devices for recording data from high impact events such as direct or near direct explosive blasts are known in the art. These sensors or data recording devices are generally designed around identifying instances of severe blasts or to otherwise continually record particular data being sensed.
There is a need in the art for a personal body worn blast recorder that may be used by a variety of personnel associated with first responder and military communities, and in particular to monitor personnel involved in frequent exposures to low level blast, such as in explosive breaching, forced entry, tactical team training, training centers for the controlled use of explosives or blast weapons, or firing of large weapons, etc. There has been a need from an occupational health and safety perspective to capture the total blast exposure over time of individuals exposed to low levels of controlled blast. In recent years, various studies have documented a degradation in physiological performance for individuals exposed to frequent blast events in training schools. Tactical (or SWAT) teams involved in dynamic entry involving explosive breaching undergo much live training with low level blast. In addition to medical symptoms, there is a need to optimize positioning, tactics, techniques and procedures associated with explosive entry in a quantitative manner. There is a need in the art for a portable and versatile blast recording device that permits a team to improve their safety from blast exposure, while recording the total blast exposure over time.
Additionally, prior art devices have been unable to consistently and over a long period of time in training or in the operating theatre record blast exposure for victims of accidental blast or attack events involving first responders or military personnel, such as those from terrorist devices, improvised explosive devices, military confrontations, EOD, etc.
Furthermore, prior art devices are often difficult to wear on the person being monitored, particularly in a removable or transportable manner, and are intrusive in respect of operations being undertaken. Furthermore, they are deficient in providing a repeatable technique for quantitative and cost effective capture of blast pressure exposure in realistic field operations, and particularly with respect to continuous capture of low level blast events.
There is therefore a need in the art to address one or more of the above identified problems with prior art devices. There is also a need in the art for a blast monitoring and/or recording devices to monitor and/or record low level blasts.